ABINGTON – Following an active but overweight childhood, Matt Warner was finally in top shape and “full of bravado” moving furniture with bad form in July 2007 when an entertainment center got the best of him.

“My back completely gave out on me,” Warner said. “The years of abuse caught up to me.”

Warner was out of work for more than a year after his injury. Through a state-funded worker rehabilitation program, he enrolled at Quincy College and completed a certification in exercise science.

“Everything happened for a reason,” Warner said. “It’s how I got here.”

Today, Warner makes a living teaching people how to use their muscles the right way. His nearly 30 clients visit Bare Bones Gym, located at his Abington home, for individual and small group training sessions.

The business helps him to bolster the income brought in by his longtime girlfriend, Caitlin Jones, an IT specialist, and allows Warner spend time with his 4-year-old daughter, Keira.

Keira heads to pre-school in the fall, but in the meantime she plays or watches movies in the in-law apartment at Warner and Jones’ home, or, while her father trains nearby, she can hang out in a designated area of Warner’s renovated garage, replete with a chalkboard and big wheel.

Warner trained at a local gym for a while after he became certified in 2007 by the American Council on Exercise. But he found that he was spending as much time selling memberships and cleaning.

When Warner and Jones had Keira, and added on to Warner’s childhood home in 2010, the idea was born.

“Childcare is very expensive,” Warner said. “It just made sense going out on a limb.”

Warner, a 1999 Abington High School graduate, built his client base through word of mouth at first, signing on people he knew from school. He started with a weight bench, punching bag and a treadmill – hence the name Bare Bones Gym.

“For a long time it was friends that came back around,” he said. “Life comes full cycle.”

Earlier this year, Warner said he made a more concerted effort to attract clients through his website and by offering tips and prizes on his Facebook page.

Warner’s clients are primarily woman, who typically look to tone their muscles and lose weight. His male clients chiefly aim to get stronger.

He has an obstacle course behind the house for use during warmer months, and last year Warner was certified by the nonprofit fitness group ACE as a nutrition specialist.

Warner said he likes the scaled-down nature of his gym because it is less intimidating and allows him to constantly shuffle workout routines, which fends off exercise plateaus and boredom.

Page 2 of 2 - If someone doesn’t know whether they face a grueling attack on their legs or some of their favorite exercises, they are much less likely to cancel an appointment, he said.

Warner has had a penchant for business since age 12, when he traded organized athletics for a paycheck from a local miniature golf course. Later, after high school, he helped people move on the side while working for a retailer hauling heavy furniture.

“This is the first legitimate one where I took the plunge,” Warner said.